Defense smothers Tomlinson

Foxboro — Maybe it's true about all the things Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson's had to say about the Patriots on more than one occasion over the past eight months.

Dan Pires

Foxboro — Maybe it's true about all the things Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson's had to say about the Patriots on more than one occasion over the past eight months.

Not only has he called them "classless," he has also strongly intimated that they're underhanded.

One thing had been for sure: He's been the Patriots' daddy pretty much every time they've faced one another.

Sometimes you can't always have your way, though. Last night was one of them.

Besides shutting down the highly regarded and very loquacious Chargers, the Patriots didn't allow Tomlinson to make any plays.

This was clearly uncharted territory for Tomlinson. After all, he's never had a bad game against the Patriots regardless of the venue.

In his four previous games against the Patriots, Tomlinson's been virtually unstoppable — he's averaged 25 carries and 137 rushing yards per game and close to two touchdowns per game. Patriots running back Laurence Maroney was effusive in his praise when asked about Tomlinson on Friday.

"Sweet. He's a good back, man. You're afraid to see him get the ball because every time he touches it you feel like he has a chance of making a big play out of it," Maroney would say.

Yesterday was like what happens in the stock market occasionally — this was a major correction when you consider the past performances.

Sometimes the ball doesn't bounce your way, though. Hey, even the Harlem Globetrotters lose once in a while to the Washington Generals.

Other times you don't even have the ball long enough to make the opposition break a sweat. When you're arguably the best player on the field, when you have the ball for just 11 minutes in the first half and you're trailing the entire way, it's going to be challenge to get into a groove.

Being down 24-0 at the half will change any team's focus. Thanks to their inability to stop the thoroughly electrifying Patriots, the Chargers dug themselves a rather deep hole very early in the game. As a result, Tomlinson's red bulls'-eye over his No. 21 jersey wasn't as big as usual.

"He is definitely hard to contain because he starts and stops so fast," said cornerback Ellis Hobbs about the NFL's reigning Most Valuable Player and Man of the Year.

"When you're pursuing him you have to understand you have to contain him and be a playmaker. Use your technique, use your leverage, use your pursuit angles. And you always need 11 (sets of) hands coming to the ball."

Thanks to all 22 hands on defense (and the still-quality ones that belong to wide receiver Randy Moss), the Patriots were able to contain Tomlinson every time he got the ball.

The truth of the matter was that the Patriots were thoroughly efficient in all three areas of their game, even in the wake of consecutive-week scandals that had emerged both during and before the season opener against the New York Jets.

By the end of the first quarter, Tomlinson had handled the ball six times — all rushes — for 18 yards. His longest run went for 8 yards.

By the time the second half was over, he had rushed the ball 11 times for 37 yards. He was also on the receiving end of one pass that went for 6 yards.

Considering that Tomlinson's the same guy who personally rewrote the NFL's record book 13 times in 2006, this wasn't anywhere near the performance that was expected coming into the game.

Maybe Tomlinson was distracted? On Monday, he was one of the first to revel in the Patriots videogate scandal.

"I think the Patriots actually live by the saying, 'If you're not cheating, you're not trying,'" he had said.

He might have finished the game with more than 43 rushing yards on 18 carries. Not only was he kept out of the end zone, he didn't even pass through it even on the walk back to the visitors locker room.

Patriots linebacker Rosevelt Colvin had an unbelievable game; along with five solo tackles, he forced two fumbles and two sacks.

Colvin said that there was a huge challenge before the game began, mostly in the form of Tomlinson.

"Whoever is assigned to covering him or tackling him," said Colvin, "which would be the whole defense, has to get it done."

They did. The Patriots played with class last night — which is considerably more than the Chargers can say for themselves.

Dan Pires covers the Patriots for The Standard-Times. Contact him at dpires@s-t.com